A new smile on the face of establishment. (A Repeat)

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At the local library several weeks back I bought a handful of books to read for fun. Being abroad makes me even more eager for reading ANYTHING that's in English. One of them was a political science text book The Irony of Democracy: An Uncommon Introduction to American Politics (fourth edition) by Thom. R Dye & L Harmon Zeigler. With an uncommon title like that I was hooked to see what lay behind the cover. It was published in 1978. Keep that in mind. The 10th Chapter (The Presidency in Crisis), in particular, however struck me as being very much about the "now." 


Jimmy Carter figured prominently in the then-new edition and I was awed by what the authors laid out in the section "Jimmy Carter: A New Smile on the Face of the Establishment".

"James Earl Carter, Jr., is a political "outsider" who was catapulted in less than two years from a Plains, Georgia, peanut farmer to president f the United States. At first glance, Carter's meteoric rise from rustic obscurity to the nation's most powerful office would seem to demolish the elitist notion that leaders are selected from upper-class backgrounds or from the ranks of seasoned officeholders. But a closer examination of elite concerns in 1976--especially concern over declining public confidence in established elites themselves--together with Carter's reassuring, smiling, "we're -okay" style of politics--provides a better understanding of how and when an "outsider" will be selected for national leadership."

In that section of the book the authors proceed to argue that in 1976 established elites were very concerned with the public's noticeable declining trust in all things political; said elites undertook a makeover of the leadership structure by replacing old, "experienced" faces with fresh ones; that the makeover was purely cosmetic "and would include no fundamental changes in policies, programs, or values." 

Starting to sound familiar?

"The national news media paid little attention to Carter's December 1974 (Obama February 2007) announcement of his presidential candidacy...observers everywhere expected that established leaders----Hubert H Humphrey or Edward M Kennedy (Hilary Clinton & John Edwards)----would win the presidency in 1976 (2008)...However Carter knew the first two primaries were in New Hampshire and Florida (Iowa & New Hampshire). The first was a small state (Iowa) where he had two years to engage in  face-to-face campaigning. These two early primary victories brought Carter recognition that he needed (Obama took first in Iowa, second in New Hampshire). Would either of the heavy weights, Humphrey or Kennedy (Al Gore),  enter the race and take the prize away from Carter. Carter avoided specifics on issues, and campaigned on charm, decency, and brotherly love...described himself as 'a farmer, an engineer, a businessman, a planner, a scientist, a governor, and a Christian' (biracial, community organizer, scholar, outsider, Christian)...His choice of Walter Mondale (Joe Biden) as vice presidential running mate assured liberals that he was not a southern populist (elitist naive northern populist)...he emphasizes his humble beginnings. Carter brought a new down-home image into national politics [but] stuck closely to established liberal remedies for society's problems: social programs for the poor and aged; civil rights commitments for blacks (homosexuals); jobs for the unemployed; federal aid for cities (bailout monies); tax 'reform' (health care reform)....

    

Jimmy Carter's rapid rise to national leadership, and his welcome into top elite circles, represents still another tactic available to an embattled elite----replace the old faces associated with past defeats and humiliations with smiling new faces promising honesty, compassion, and good times (Yes We Can! 2008)."

Now, does this political analysis sound thirty years old to you? 
So while the Camelot comparisons were lost on no one, perhaps we should actually be comparing President Obama to the unglamorous Carter.